Limitless (2015–2016): Season 1, Episode 17 - Close Encounters - full transcript
While Brian and Rebecca investigate a blackout, they are exposed to an unknown substance and put under quarantine.
BRIAN: Previously on Limitless...
We give him the pill once a day.
It enhances his cognition.
Five NZT pills.
- What are those for?
- Whatever you want.
I might have a few extra NZT pills,
my own stash.
We are gonna talk about this later.
Pretty tidy stitch job.
- The FBI teach you that?
- Yes, it did.
Rach, I really mean it when I say
don't tell anyone about this, OK?
Not anyone, ever.
BRIAN: Sands killed Rebecca's lather.
I couldn't help my father.
Maybe I can help you.
Just don't lie to me. Ever.
BRIAN: "I wanna wake up
in the city that never sleeps."
Frank Sinatra once sang that,
and now it's a cliche'.
But when things get bad, and t would say
that living with the knowledge
Sands killed Rebecca's father
qualifies as bad,
it's comforting to know that t can walk
out any door, any hour of the night,
and New York is still going.
Plenty to keep
an NZT-enhanced mind occupied.
That's kind of how I wound up here.
[SPEAKS FOREIGN LANGUAGE]
- Beard.
- Beard. The guy had a beard?
No, he's saying the guy
had a neck tattoo. FBI.
Do you have a sketch artist on hand?
Yeah. Marty.
Hey, Marty. Do you mind if I take a stab
at this? Thanks very much.
BRIAN 2: I know what you're doing.
Brian Finch, not the hero the people
want, or need for that matter.
What are you even doing out here?
- I'm about to close this case.
- Look, I get it, you're good at this.
And you may like that doing good
helps you forget all the bad.
But what you're really doing
is ducking a bunch of trouble
that's gonna find you anyway.
[PHONE RINGS]
You're gonna have to lie to her
sooner or later.
- You're pretty good at that, huh?
- Yeah.
[SPEAKS FOREIGN LANGUAGE]
- There you go.
- [RADIO BLEEPS]
MAN: We got a 10-10, body o! a male
in his 20s found in Grand Ferry Park.
AH units please respond.
[CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS]
[CRUNCHING]
Are you eating Funyuns?
Doesn't that defy the rules of...
You're not the only rebel tonight.
This whole avoiding Rebecca thing...
Dude, what am I supposed to do?
You know, when I'm around her,
all I can think about is how I know
that Sands murdered her dad,
that the person who killed him
is the same one keeping me alive.
Can I tell her that? No.
No, because that would mean
you would have to tell Rebecca
that you are Senator Morra's mole
in the FBI,
which means losing, let's see,
the enzyme and your immunity.
And my freedom, my life.
And even if you found some way
to dodge all that,
you'd have to go back
to being just Brian.
He'!-
Let's face it,
you'd miss me, wouldn't you?
So, I'm telling you, pushing Rebecca
away is not the way to handle this.
- That's not what I'm doing.
- [PHONE RINGS]
Dude, you can ignore her,
but you can't ignore me.
BRIAN: Huh. That's weird.
Hmm.
- Did you find something?
- Yeah.
This is a city government-issued key.
How do you know?
One time I memorized the whole
NYC government directory online.
And that key starts with a nine seven,
which is the Department of Buildings,
followed by a one,
which specifically means
the Manhattan Permit Approvals Office.
So maybe you should
move your investigation there.
BRIAN: Let's just say
it was a very productive night.
While the energy o! the city
temporarily took my mind of! things,
I was right,
or the other Brian was right.
I knew I couldn't avoid Rebecca forever.
My subconscious just wouldn't let me.
- Brian, what the hell?
- Never mind.
I know people at the NYPD.
You think they're not gonna tell me
my consultant is running around
flashing his badge?
Well...
- You haven't been answering my calls.
- My phone's dead.
[PHONE RINGS]
That's weird.
Are you on NZT when you're off duty?
We've talked about this.
Well, technically I am working,
Rebecca. I'm just networking for you.
- Whoa. Look over there.
- Nice try.
No, no, I'm serious.
What's going on?
WOMAN: Emergency generators are
in use. Please conserve all power.
Mike, what, are you hitting me
with a pick-me-up?
Yep.
- We're assembling in the bullpen.
- Be right there.
You're gonna double your dose?
Listen, I really appreciate you
not saying anything to... you know.
We are gonna talk about this.
We have two distinct areas that are
currently affected by the blackout.
The financial district
took the first hit at 0400 hours.
Authorities are dealing
with the usual mess,
people trapped in subways, elevators,
as well as the what-ifs,
you know, what if the backup generator
fails and the hospitals go dark
or the cell tower goes down
or the water stops running?
So, in the northeast...
Hey, family. Got power'!?
Lightning bolt emoji.
No power. Tommy gets to stay home
from school. Ya y.
We're in Jersey, doofus.
We got power here.
Yeah, but it's still Jersey.
No power here.
Mom, how about you and Dad?
Oowers on her.
Mom, we've talked about this.
Autocorrect, please.
Sorry, it's on now, as is the power.
Can you kids come home?
City's gonna be a tangle.
Rach and Cam, I'll have Mike and Ike
pick you up, take you to Westchester?
Pea soup emoji.
I think that means she'll cook?
Or you guys'll watch The Exorcist?
Hey, Rach,
try not to bang your FBI escort, OK?
Oh, wait, too late.
Middle-finger emoji, jackass.
NAZ: You're here
because we have to acknowledge
that the blackout
hit our financial lifeline first.
Cyber is working on an angle
that countries like China and Russia
are powerful enough
to actually launch a cyber attack
that will basically knock us
back to the Dark Ages.
Yeah, I don't know.
- Brian, you have a thought.
- I do.
As a matter of fact,
while we still have power,
I'd like to propose
an alternative offender.
- Come on up.
- OK.
So, dark red indicates our city's
highest level of energy consumption,
the largest consumer
being here and here.
Now, even though these two areas
seem geographically disparate,
they are, in fact,
connected by the wind.
Now, the power outages are following
the natural citywide gust flow.
I got a D minus
in environmental science, by the way.
It was a real squeaker,
but passing's passing.
Brian, your parents
must have been very proud.
They really were. All right, watch this.
Drafts get stuck inside the city walls
and then slingshot up
and over the high-rises,
and you can see it goes right from
the financial district up to Midtown.
So you're saying the blackout
is weather related?
I'm saying that based on the pattern,
whatever's causing the blackouts
might be getting blown around
by the wind, but, you know,
I'd have to confirm by visiting
local power plants, and...
And we should still rule out the
possibility of cyber warfare, of course.
- All right. Go.
- OK.
Agent Paget will coordinate with Cyber.
Agent Boyle will deal
with the task force here on the floor.
- I'll give you a lift.
- You're coming?
- Is that a problem?
- No, I just... I don't know.
It's kind of a wild guess.
I don't wanna waste your time.
Well, I've seen those pan out before.
You can explain it on the way.
We should let Mike and Ike know.
I actually kind of sent 'em
on a mission of their own.
Man, what in the hell are you doing?
- Nothing.
- You're primping.
- I'm not primping.
- Like a peacock.
Gotta look good
to win over little sister Finch.
Oh, please. That ship already came in.
- Well, do tell.
- Yeah, we've been, um... texting.
Mm-hm.
Which is mainly... you know, me texting.
She's not texting you back.
How many texts have you sent?
I mean, do Bitmojis count?
- Oh, hi.
- Hi.
- Hi, Rachel. Hi.
- Thanks for picking me up.
Yeah.
[SIGHS]
Are we going or just...?
- Buckle up.
- Yeah.
Generator's operational.
I've had my guys check and recheck.
Nothing wrong with the turbine blades.
The rotor is moving. The stator is good.
It doesn't make any sense.
We should be hot.
MAN: Engineer, please stand by
alter pressure test.
- [WHIRRING]
- You guys hear that?
Hey, Maurice. So the electricity's
not making it out of the generator.
It's not reaching the power lines.
Exactly.
It's just disappearing into thin air.
- Can you open it up?
- Sure. Step back.
- What are you looking for?
- Well...
Well, if it was carried by the wind,
it might be something
we can't see with the naked eye.
Do you mind if I borrow
that black light?
MAURICE: Be my guest.
Here, step back.
- What the hell is it?
- Whatever it is, it's organic.
Could that be causing the blackout,
though? Thank you.
Can I talk to you for a minute?
We have to call Naz. This could be
some kind of biological attack.
Yeah.
- You know, I saw this last night.
- Out on your capeless crusades?
This glowy stuff,
it was on a murder victim.
It was all over his hands. I mean,
it's gotta be connected somehow.
Oh, so your illicit, illegal escapades,
they weren't for nothing.
- I also do some good, you know.
- And the city thanks you.
But it doesn't make what you did right,
or legal, or OK with me.
- You wanna follow up on this lead?
- Yes, lead on.
So we headed to the workplace
o! Luis Vargas,
the dead security guard
with the glowing hands.
The New York City
Department of Buildings
is the department that regulates
the building ol, well, buildings,
which is where we ran into
my new friend, Detective Hernandez.
Brian Finch.
The man fights crime by day too.
Detective Hernandez,
meet Agent Rebecca Harris.
Thanks for letting us borrow
your golden boy last night.
- Pleasure.
- So what's up?
Last night
I noticed something really weird.
It was like a green and orange substance
on Luis Vargas's body.
It may be connected to the blackout. Did
you guys notice anything unusual here?
There was a broken lamp
on the 18th floor.
But could've been knocked over
in the blackout. Nothing's missing.
Huh. Isn't that where they store
the blueprints for the city buildings?
Saw it on the directory.
You mind if we take a look?
Cool.
- Elevators are out, aren't they?
- Yep. Hope you packed extra lungs.
[SIGHS]
I gotta up my cardio.
What do you think, spinning?
- Do you spin?
- I chase you around all night.
Hey, you know, to be fair, we wouldn't
even be following this lead...
Hang on.
...if I hadn't have gone out last night
on NZT.
If you expect me to thank you for a lead
that took me up 18 flights of stairs...
It's just you swore
you would stop hoarding NZT pills.
I have, OK? That was my last one.
Well, and this one,
the one Mike gave me.
You promise you're not lying to me?
What are we, six years old?
I promise, OK?
No more extra pills.
We have files here, files there.
- You wanna split up, cover more ground?
- Yeah.
BRIAN: You might be wondering
what I'm looking for. So am I.
But I at least have a theory.
Someone broke in here
searching for something.
But what were they after'!?
I mean, their filing system
was a clerical nightmare,
but after t sorted out the documents
that were misfiled or misplaced...
...there was one empty drawer
that stood out,
one that seemed recently raided.
Blueprints for a building
on 53rd Street in Turtle Bay.
What was there
that was worth murdering a guard for
and how did this all relate
to the blackout?
Rebecca?
Rebecca?
Whoa. Hey, Hernandez, what's going on?
Sir, please hold right there.
- Are you Brian Finch?
- Yeah.
- He's positive.
- You need to come with us.
What the hell?
Under 42 CFR 70,
we're placing you into quarantine.
You came into contact
with a suspicious substance.
- From the power plant? What was it?
- Undetermined.
- What does that mean?
- It came from an unknown origin.
- You've both been exposed.
- OK, OK, OK, OK.
Remember when you offered
to give me a ride today,
and I was like, "Nah"
and you were like, "I insist?"
I'm guessing
you regret that decision now?
You're not wrong.
Of all the days to get sealed up
in a plastic bubble together.
I just mean cos you're annoyed
about last night and the pills.
We cleared that up.
Unless you're still lying to me.
- I'm not.
- Then we're good.
Good.
[GROANS]
My phone's dead.
Here, can I borrow yours?
Just gotta do some research
on the Luis Vargas case.
Well, here's a lucky pair.
I'm Sturgeon Reid, astrophysicist.
Today I'm working in tandem with the CDC
to take a look at the substance
that you encountered at the power plant.
Why is an astrophysicist
working with the CDC?
Well...
MAN ON TV:
What did we discover today?
Officials are not yet sure,
but panspermia, yeah?
The idea that life on earth...
What exactly were we exposed to?
- Would you turn that off, please?
- “extraterrestrial life...
We know that it is a bacterium
which appears to be feeding
directly off the electricity
generated by the power plant.
It's not the first bacterium to do this,
but this species is unique.
Unique? As in from outer space?
We found traces of the bacterium
on a cargo ship
that passed under
the Quadrantid meteor shower yesterday,
so it's possible that the origins
of this species could be...
Alien?
This is awesome.
Wait, we're not gonna die, are we?
What's the plan
to stop the bacteria from spreading?
Since it's feeding off electricity,
we're hoping to starve it by shutting
down all the power in Manhattan.
That's gonna be chaos.
And how long do we have to stay here?
Well, since you've had direct exposure,
I've recommended
you stay in observation.
Alert the attendant if you feel ill.
But look on the bright side.
You could be making history.
- I don't know about all this.
- What do you mean?
I don't know. Can I borrow your phone?
Or we could play charades.
Thank you.
[HORNS BLARE]
What's your... What's your station?
Anything's good.
I don't really listen to the radio.
[TURNS OFF RADIO]
Looks like we're getting out of here
just in time.
- I don't want to.
- Come on.
Hey, thanks for this, by the way.
You can imagine what it's like to have
a cold, stir-crazy five-year-old.
Give me the bag.
All right, we need the bag. The bag.
[HORN BLARES]
Hi. Oh, I'm so glad you're...
I'm so glad you're OK.
- Hi, doll.
- Hi, honey.
MOM: We're so glad you got here.
We were getting worried.
- Who's that?
- They got us out of the city. Be nice.
- Thanks for taking care of my kids.
- Of course, sir. It was our pleasure.
Well, I assume you'll be going back now.
Good luck.
Actually, our orders are to stay
until everything's been cleared up.
- Orders from whom?
- Your son, sir, Brian.
We can wait outside if that's easier.
Well, no, of course not.
It's freezing. Come in.
Dennis is just getting lunch.
I'm gluten-free.
BRIAN: Turtle Bay. The address
is on 53rd between 2nd and 3rd.
BOYLE: You do realize
we're kind of busy here?
Yeah, I'm not asking you
to go get me some Skittles, Boyle.
I know this is important.
Look, the missing blueprints were
for some kind of commercial building,
and when I looked online,
all of the occupants from the ground up
were pretty mundane.
I mean, I couldn't figure out
why anyone would target them.
But the basement tenant is the United
States Bureau of Engraving and Printing.
Oh, I know that location. It's where
banks send soiled and defaced bills.
Exactly.
The Department of Mutilated Money.
And the New York office
handles the entire northeast.
Do you know how much cash
they must have in there?
But it's unusable currency
waiting to be destroyed.
Not all of it. A good fraction of it
can be cleaned and repaired.
A security guard, Luis Vargas,
was killed the other day,
presumably by whoever was stealing
the blueprints for this address.
Do you know what they found
on his body?
The same bacterium
that's causing the blackout,
except Luis Vargas was killed a full day
before the meteor shower hit New York.
So you think the bacteria
came from some other alien invasion?
As much as I hate to admit it,
I think it might not be alien at all.
I mean, they say
it's similar to known bacteria.
So what if someone
cultivated a new strain
and released it to cause a blackout?
It's the perfect cover
to steal a bunch o! cash.
Yeah, mutilated cash.
Why not hit a bank?
Because it's an easier target.
People think
that money's basically trash,
which means people wouldn't think
to look there first, but we did.
If we can just get over there, we might
be able to stop the heist from happening
and find the people responsible
for the whole blackout.
- Yeah.
- And by we... I mean you.
Because we're still
kind of quarantined here.
All right, I'll see what I can do.
- Can I have that?
- What the hell is this?
- Can I have my phone, please?
- No. What the hell is this?
Who sent this to you?
An agent sent to search the government
property where you're living
for what looks like NZT pills
hidden in your vinyl collection.
You told me there weren't any more.
You could've said something to me before
sending the cavalry into my apartment.
I did say something and you lied to me.
Do you have any idea
how irresponsible it is
to use this drug however you want,
whenever you want?
The rules, managing your dosage,
keeping a watch out for you,
they're there to keep you alive,
to keep you safe.
The FBI doesn't care about keeping me
safe. They care about keeping me useful.
If you think I don't care,
you haven't been paying attention.
I brought you into the FBI.
I've stood up for you...
You have no idea
what you're talking about.
I know what happens
if this gets out of hand.
I'm not like anyone. No one else is
going through what I am going through.
You are hiding pills
like an addict, Brian.
I know that you are immune
to NZT side effects
and I know that makes you think
you're different somehow.
- But you are not immune.
- You're gonna tell me what I think?
- That's not what I'm saying.
- You don't know inside my head.
We're not psychic twins,
and if you want the real truth,
I may be addicted to these drugs.
Thanks for that, by the way.
- But you're addicted to me.
- What?
Solving things, breaking cases,
that's your high.
Because of me,
you get to do it at a whole new level.
You wanna go back to your old life,
keeping up with paperwork
and crossing your Ts
and dotting your ls,
seeing it all end in frustration
half the time?
You need all this as much as I do,
you need NZT as much as I do,
and you know it.
Can I have my phone?
BRIAN: Two pills. They only found two.
Where are the others?
- Dad looks stressed.
- Well, can you blame him?
First there's the power outage.
Now we have federal agents in the living
room making awkward conversation.
Yeah.
Or maybe he's just picking up
on the glances
between you and the one
who looks like Cary Grant.
- Mom.
- I'm just saying, Rachel, come on.
That boy is smitten.
It's written all over his face.
- Please stop talking.
- Square jaw, still has all his hair.
I swear to God, I will cut my wrist
with this butter knife.
All right, so something is on your mind.
If it's not him, what is it?
Don't tell Dad, OK?
He gets so upset about these things.
It's Brian.
We were hanging out at his safe house
the other night
and he went over to his records
and it looked like
he took something out.
So when he left, I went over...
[SIGHS]
...and I found...
I'm not sure what they are,
but I'm pretty sure that they are part
of why he is the way that he is now.
But what's really bothering me is
did he get into the FBI
because he's taking these?
Or are they the ones
that are giving it to him?
I've never seen anything like this.
- You OK?
- Hey, Dad.
Yes, yes, good. Um...
Here, let me help you put out lunch, OK?
OK, good.
[BOYLE WHISTLES]
They cleaned house.
BRIAN: Not a dollar inside?
Not one you can spend. Cleaned out.
Looks like you had the right idea.
We just didn't get here in time.
So it was a heist, and they did know
the blackout was coming.
Well, I talked
to the department's senior manager.
The guy estimates there was a little
more than $8 million in this safe.
Boyle, I'll have to call you back.
Looks like the CDC might have an update.
Agent Rebecca Harris, Brian Finch.
Aren't you guys supposed to be
wearing masks or something?
The bacterium proved non-communicable.
Seems it feeds exclusively on electrons
found in inanimate sources.
Meaning we didn't have to be here
in the first place?
You're free to go.
Well, after we take your vitals.
Legal issue.
Proof we sent you home in good health.
- You're discharged.
- Hey, Rebecca.
[SIGHS]
We get our clothes back, right?
Marie. Marie. Stop.
Come here.
Sit down. Talk to me.
- What's on your mind?
- You talk to Brian more than I do.
He's always sought you out, trusted you.
Dennis, I know that you have been
talking to him about all of this,
all right, and I understand
if you wanna keep it close to the vest,
and you wouldn't do that if
you didn't know that he was all right.
- But is Brian all right?
- What do you mean?
I mean, what are they doing to him?
Do you know?
He's fine. Brian's gonna be all right.
Do you know anything
about pills or drugs they're giving him?
What do you know?
- Hard at work, I see.
- Yeah.
- You OK?
- Yeah.
I mean, I'm a little bummed that the CDC
burned my Joy Division shirt.
It was an original.
- You seen Rebecca?
- She's upstairs with Naz.
Mmm.
Something happen between you two
in quarantine?
I don't know.
Mistakes were made, words were said.
I guess it's our first real fight.
Well, the handler-consultant
relationship is stressful enough
without being thrown
into a plastic bubble together.
You guys will get through it.
- OK?
- Yeah.
Generators and cell towers
are starting to power down.
I told Naz I'd come down,
check in to see if you had any leads
on the mutilated money gang.
Yeah, I do have something.
So my theory is that whoever pulled off
the heist planted the bacteria, right?
And since the financial district
was the first to lose power,
specifically the 200 block
of Chambers Street,
we can assume that's where the bacteria
was first introduced.
Now, as for who did it...
...there are only 12 people
in the New York area
with enough scientific expertise
to not only engineer the bacteria
but also know
how to successfully plant it.
Now, if they were smart enough
to do all that,
then they're probably smart enough
to stay off security cameras,
and that's where these come in.
Well, I've come to respect
some of your ways, Finch.
That doesn't mean that I'm gonna be
strolling around the financial district
wearing a sandwich board.
There's a large homeless population
around that area,
people who have nowhere to go
during a blackout.
- They might identify one of the perps.
- Or I could call a friend at the NSA.
- We're not doing that.
- Why not?
They would have a copy of every phone
conversation these scientists have had.
Well, is this on the DL
or are we asserting the Patriot Act?
You're siding to protect
people's privacy? That's ironic.
Heist or not, someone shut down
the power on Manhattan.
That's an act of terrorism.
Or you can wear the sandwich board.
He's your consultant.
Actually, I was gonna make a few.
I thought we could all wear 'em.
No, you're right, Boyle,
we should call in the NSA.
Brian, can I talk to you for a second?
Yeah.
Look, I'm sorry...
You know, when all of this started,
we made promises to each other.
I said I would help you through anything
as long as you didn't lie to me.
- I know. I didn't mean to lie to you.
- I just spoke to Naz.
You're being assigned
to a different handler,
and in the meantime
you'll work with Boyle.
BRIAN: 0! course,
the day the NSA came to the CJC
was the day everything started
spiraling out of control.
You know how for years
the NSA has been saying
they only collect metadata
from phone conversations?
Well, that's sort of a lie.
Don't handle that, please.
They're actually
recording and storing the audio
of at least 80%
of Americans' phone calls.
Sign here.
Can I touch?
The average adult sends and receives
about five calls a day.
Multiply that by 365 days,
times 12 suspects
and I'm listening
to over 21,000 conversations.
Most of them were totally irrelevant.
I told you not to push her away.
Relax. You don't have to say anything.
A new handler? Really? You think
you're gonna be able to make that work?
Is there anyone else here
who will protect you like she did?
How are you going to fix this?
I can't.
Ma... Uh...
I can't make out this last track.
If you... Yeah, rewind that. Thank you.
Where was I? Right, it's down
to Ian Marshall and Sturgeon Reid.
STURGEON:
I'm not disagreeing with you.
It's just that we won't recognize it,
even if it was ET biting us on the ass.
Man isn't ready.
Maybe in our grandchildren's lifetime,
but not in ours.
IAN:
You care to make a bet?
One dollar says we will find
evidence of alien life in our lifetime.
STURGEON:
And one dollar says we won't.
I believe you owe Dr. Marshall a dollar,
Dr. Reid.
What is this? What are we doing here?
You two have
kind of a friendly rivalry... ish.
Just a couple of eminent astrophysicists
debating whether or not
we discover evidence of extraterrestrial
life within the next couple of decades.
You even made a bet about it,
didn't you? For one dollar.
How could you possibly know that?
On the one hand,
we have the skeptic, Sturgeon Reid.
Laying his money and pride on the ETs,
Dr. Ian Marshall.
And you saw to it you were gonna win
that buck, didn't you?
I'm not conceding
that such a bet even happened.
We don't need you to.
We shared our concerns
with the provost of Walcott University
and she agreed
to let us take a look in your lab.
We found trace amounts
of the bacteria causing the outages,
some destroyed cultures.
- Care to explain?
- I'll get you started.
You discovered a species of bacteria
that feeds on electrons,
but you kept it to yourself.
You released a colony
in the financial district
and timed that release
with the passage of the meteor shower,
so people would start thinking aliens.
It's a clever plan, dude. Own it.
Plus we already got you
kind of dead to rights, so...
Actually, it was one of my research
assistants who discovered the bacteria,
but I convinced her not to report it.
I just wanted to win.
And at some point
you started to want more than that.
I'm sorry?
The theft of $8 million
from the Department of Mutilated Money.
Luis Vargas, the security guard
you murdered two nights ago.
You caused the blackout, then used it
as cover to make yourself rich.
He surprised you
when you were stealing the plans.
No, no, no, no, no. I am not a killer.
I'm not a thief. I have tenure.
Two nights ago?
What time did this murder happen?
Time of death is estimated
between 9 and 11 pm.
Relax, Ian.
Tuesday night, Dr. Marshall and I
gave a lecture together at Columbia.
1,400 students will attest
for our whereabouts.
He may have planted the bacteria,
but Dr. Marshall didn't kill anyone.
REPORTER: Please avoid at! streets
between Houston and Grand,
Allen and the East River.
City officials have reopened the
Williamsburg Bridge and a checkpoint...
- Come on, come on, come on.
- [HORN BLARES]
HEY. guys. How's it going?
That's a dumb question. It's not going.
That's the thing
about standstill traffic, right?
It's the pits. Corey Martinson?
You're Ian Marshall's research
assistant. I'll take that as a yes.
So we're from the FBI
and we just learned
that your boss is the one
behind the hoax that paralyzed the city.
And the way he tells it, you helped him
fabricate the bacteria that did it.
Also he said you were his only partner.
Would you be willing to testify against
your boss in the charges he faces?
Um...
I don't know.
Wait. How did you find me here?
Here? We just waited for you to show up.
This is, after all, the only way
out of the city at the moment.
We at the FBI kindly set it up that way.
Thing is, somebody used the blackout
to stage a robbery
of the Department of Mutilated Money.
Someone like, say,
an underpaid research assistant
with crushing amounts of student debt.
Someone who saw her boss's relatively
harmless hoax as an opportunity.
That same somebody had a cousin
who did time for armed robbery.
- Hi, Frank.
- Together they came up with a plan.
They even ordered a ridiculous amount
of laundry detergents from Amazon
to clean the money they stole.
Any of this sounding familiar?
Of course not.
Would you two mind if we took a look
in the back of this ambulance,
rented from a private EMS service
to move about freely in the quarantine?
Hey. hey!
Thank you. We weren't able to get
a warrant with all the power being out.
But that attempted escape
is probable cause.
And that, my friend,
is irrefutable evidence.
What's it say?
I wonder if anyone's ever tried
calling this number.
Think there's actually a good time
at the end of this line? Should we call?
You can give it a shot if you want.
I'm gonna go home, man.
Hey, Brian, pains me to say it,
but, uh... it's not the worst thing,
huh, us working together?
I didn't really wanna go home. I sure
as hell didn't wanna go back to the CJC.
There's only one place
I could think to go,
the one place people still love me
because they have no choice.
Hey, Cameron. You leaving already?
I was hoping to catch you guys
for dinner.
We heard it shouldn't be long
before the power's restored.
- If I were you, I'd turn around now.
- What? Why?
I don't know what's going on,
but I definitely heard your name,
so run while you can.
Hey. guys. What's going on?
Sit down, Brian.
OK. Sounds ominous.
Mom, you OK?
You know, Brian, I always knew that
you had something special about you.
A good head, you were sensitive,
you cared about other people,
even if you were being impulsive,
even if the things you were doing
looked selfish on the face of it.
I believed in that light
that was in you so much
that, uh, I let a lot of things slip by.
Finding pot in your jeans when you
left them out for me to wash as usual.
- Mom, come on...
- No, let me finish.
I figured that we would find
some kind of balance, you know?
Your father would give you discipline,
some structure.
I would give you room to run
so you could figure things out.
And I honestly thought
that's what was happening to you now.
I thought,
"Maybe he's finally figured it out."
Ugh. What an idiot I was.
- Come on, Mom, you can't...
- No.
- What the hell are these?
- Jesus.
You wanna tell me about them?
Because your father won't.
We've been married for 42 years
and there has never been a single thing
that we could not discuss.
So whatever these are must be serious.
- Dad...
- This is between you and your mother.
- You brought this into our home.
- No, I didn't. No, I didn't.
The moment you got your sister
into this, you did.
Leaving these pills lying around,
having her come to that safe house
that you have been mysteriously given.
- You put your sister in danger.
- No, I haven't.
Undercover agents coming over,
bleeding out on the kitchen table.
Rachel.
MARIE: Brian, no.
lam not turning a blind eye anymore.
I don't know what these pills are.
I don't wanna know.
And I don't want our family
any deeper in this than we already are.
Mom, I can't tell you everything,
but I can explain...
Brian, no.
I don't want any more excuses.
Because unless you start making
some different choices,
you are not welcome here.
I love you, Brian,
but... just...
- [MOUTHS]
- ...HO.
[I ELBOW: THE BLANKET OF NIGHT]
♪ >A' Paper cup of the boat
♪ >a' Heaving chest of the sea
♪ >a' Carry both of us
♪ >a' Carry her, carry me
♪ From the place we were born
♪ To the land o! the free
♪ >a' Carry both of us
♪ >a' Carry her, carry me
♪ >a' Moving silent her lips
♪ >a' By the moon's only light
♪ >a' Sowing silver prayers
♪ >a' In the blanket of night a'
Just go do it. It ain't gonna get
any easier, you sitting here.
- I know. It just...
- You're gonna miss her. Go.
Get out of the car!
Rachel.
- Hey.
- Listen...
Jason, I'm sorry.
I... I should've stayed in touch.
And I was weird to you
at my parents', I know.
- Things have been strange.
- I'm not here to talk about that.
Oh, OK.
Your morn mentioned
an undercover agent,
that he showed up at Brian's apartment
bleeding out?
- Yeah?
- Could you describe him for me?
Banker's hours today?
F Train. There's some kind of delay.
- I need to talk to Brian.
- Not in yet.
I guess he took the same train.
BRIAN:
I can'! come to the phone right now,
but if there's an emergency,
you can try Rebecca Harris any time.
BRIAN: Hey.
Thought about stopping by, but I figured
you'd seen enough of me lately.
You should know a few things.
Fm sorry for the things t said.
You deserve better than that.
Whatever else happens, you saw potential
in me that no one else ever did.
It's not just the pill that changed
my life, it's you, so thanks for that.
Things may get a little crazy
for a while.
I know I haven't given back
as much as you've given me.
There's probably no way I ever could.
But starting now, I'm gonna try.
And in order to try,
I've gotta do a few things,
so you may not hear from me
for a minute.
I think I have a way
to make some of this OK.
And if it all works out,
I'll see you in a few days.
And if it doesn't,
well, we had some lulz, right?
We give him the pill once a day.
It enhances his cognition.
Five NZT pills.
- What are those for?
- Whatever you want.
I might have a few extra NZT pills,
my own stash.
We are gonna talk about this later.
Pretty tidy stitch job.
- The FBI teach you that?
- Yes, it did.
Rach, I really mean it when I say
don't tell anyone about this, OK?
Not anyone, ever.
BRIAN: Sands killed Rebecca's lather.
I couldn't help my father.
Maybe I can help you.
Just don't lie to me. Ever.
BRIAN: "I wanna wake up
in the city that never sleeps."
Frank Sinatra once sang that,
and now it's a cliche'.
But when things get bad, and t would say
that living with the knowledge
Sands killed Rebecca's father
qualifies as bad,
it's comforting to know that t can walk
out any door, any hour of the night,
and New York is still going.
Plenty to keep
an NZT-enhanced mind occupied.
That's kind of how I wound up here.
[SPEAKS FOREIGN LANGUAGE]
- Beard.
- Beard. The guy had a beard?
No, he's saying the guy
had a neck tattoo. FBI.
Do you have a sketch artist on hand?
Yeah. Marty.
Hey, Marty. Do you mind if I take a stab
at this? Thanks very much.
BRIAN 2: I know what you're doing.
Brian Finch, not the hero the people
want, or need for that matter.
What are you even doing out here?
- I'm about to close this case.
- Look, I get it, you're good at this.
And you may like that doing good
helps you forget all the bad.
But what you're really doing
is ducking a bunch of trouble
that's gonna find you anyway.
[PHONE RINGS]
You're gonna have to lie to her
sooner or later.
- You're pretty good at that, huh?
- Yeah.
[SPEAKS FOREIGN LANGUAGE]
- There you go.
- [RADIO BLEEPS]
MAN: We got a 10-10, body o! a male
in his 20s found in Grand Ferry Park.
AH units please respond.
[CAMERA SHUTTER CLICKS]
[CRUNCHING]
Are you eating Funyuns?
Doesn't that defy the rules of...
You're not the only rebel tonight.
This whole avoiding Rebecca thing...
Dude, what am I supposed to do?
You know, when I'm around her,
all I can think about is how I know
that Sands murdered her dad,
that the person who killed him
is the same one keeping me alive.
Can I tell her that? No.
No, because that would mean
you would have to tell Rebecca
that you are Senator Morra's mole
in the FBI,
which means losing, let's see,
the enzyme and your immunity.
And my freedom, my life.
And even if you found some way
to dodge all that,
you'd have to go back
to being just Brian.
He'!-
Let's face it,
you'd miss me, wouldn't you?
So, I'm telling you, pushing Rebecca
away is not the way to handle this.
- That's not what I'm doing.
- [PHONE RINGS]
Dude, you can ignore her,
but you can't ignore me.
BRIAN: Huh. That's weird.
Hmm.
- Did you find something?
- Yeah.
This is a city government-issued key.
How do you know?
One time I memorized the whole
NYC government directory online.
And that key starts with a nine seven,
which is the Department of Buildings,
followed by a one,
which specifically means
the Manhattan Permit Approvals Office.
So maybe you should
move your investigation there.
BRIAN: Let's just say
it was a very productive night.
While the energy o! the city
temporarily took my mind of! things,
I was right,
or the other Brian was right.
I knew I couldn't avoid Rebecca forever.
My subconscious just wouldn't let me.
- Brian, what the hell?
- Never mind.
I know people at the NYPD.
You think they're not gonna tell me
my consultant is running around
flashing his badge?
Well...
- You haven't been answering my calls.
- My phone's dead.
[PHONE RINGS]
That's weird.
Are you on NZT when you're off duty?
We've talked about this.
Well, technically I am working,
Rebecca. I'm just networking for you.
- Whoa. Look over there.
- Nice try.
No, no, I'm serious.
What's going on?
WOMAN: Emergency generators are
in use. Please conserve all power.
Mike, what, are you hitting me
with a pick-me-up?
Yep.
- We're assembling in the bullpen.
- Be right there.
You're gonna double your dose?
Listen, I really appreciate you
not saying anything to... you know.
We are gonna talk about this.
We have two distinct areas that are
currently affected by the blackout.
The financial district
took the first hit at 0400 hours.
Authorities are dealing
with the usual mess,
people trapped in subways, elevators,
as well as the what-ifs,
you know, what if the backup generator
fails and the hospitals go dark
or the cell tower goes down
or the water stops running?
So, in the northeast...
Hey, family. Got power'!?
Lightning bolt emoji.
No power. Tommy gets to stay home
from school. Ya y.
We're in Jersey, doofus.
We got power here.
Yeah, but it's still Jersey.
No power here.
Mom, how about you and Dad?
Oowers on her.
Mom, we've talked about this.
Autocorrect, please.
Sorry, it's on now, as is the power.
Can you kids come home?
City's gonna be a tangle.
Rach and Cam, I'll have Mike and Ike
pick you up, take you to Westchester?
Pea soup emoji.
I think that means she'll cook?
Or you guys'll watch The Exorcist?
Hey, Rach,
try not to bang your FBI escort, OK?
Oh, wait, too late.
Middle-finger emoji, jackass.
NAZ: You're here
because we have to acknowledge
that the blackout
hit our financial lifeline first.
Cyber is working on an angle
that countries like China and Russia
are powerful enough
to actually launch a cyber attack
that will basically knock us
back to the Dark Ages.
Yeah, I don't know.
- Brian, you have a thought.
- I do.
As a matter of fact,
while we still have power,
I'd like to propose
an alternative offender.
- Come on up.
- OK.
So, dark red indicates our city's
highest level of energy consumption,
the largest consumer
being here and here.
Now, even though these two areas
seem geographically disparate,
they are, in fact,
connected by the wind.
Now, the power outages are following
the natural citywide gust flow.
I got a D minus
in environmental science, by the way.
It was a real squeaker,
but passing's passing.
Brian, your parents
must have been very proud.
They really were. All right, watch this.
Drafts get stuck inside the city walls
and then slingshot up
and over the high-rises,
and you can see it goes right from
the financial district up to Midtown.
So you're saying the blackout
is weather related?
I'm saying that based on the pattern,
whatever's causing the blackouts
might be getting blown around
by the wind, but, you know,
I'd have to confirm by visiting
local power plants, and...
And we should still rule out the
possibility of cyber warfare, of course.
- All right. Go.
- OK.
Agent Paget will coordinate with Cyber.
Agent Boyle will deal
with the task force here on the floor.
- I'll give you a lift.
- You're coming?
- Is that a problem?
- No, I just... I don't know.
It's kind of a wild guess.
I don't wanna waste your time.
Well, I've seen those pan out before.
You can explain it on the way.
We should let Mike and Ike know.
I actually kind of sent 'em
on a mission of their own.
Man, what in the hell are you doing?
- Nothing.
- You're primping.
- I'm not primping.
- Like a peacock.
Gotta look good
to win over little sister Finch.
Oh, please. That ship already came in.
- Well, do tell.
- Yeah, we've been, um... texting.
Mm-hm.
Which is mainly... you know, me texting.
She's not texting you back.
How many texts have you sent?
I mean, do Bitmojis count?
- Oh, hi.
- Hi.
- Hi, Rachel. Hi.
- Thanks for picking me up.
Yeah.
[SIGHS]
Are we going or just...?
- Buckle up.
- Yeah.
Generator's operational.
I've had my guys check and recheck.
Nothing wrong with the turbine blades.
The rotor is moving. The stator is good.
It doesn't make any sense.
We should be hot.
MAN: Engineer, please stand by
alter pressure test.
- [WHIRRING]
- You guys hear that?
Hey, Maurice. So the electricity's
not making it out of the generator.
It's not reaching the power lines.
Exactly.
It's just disappearing into thin air.
- Can you open it up?
- Sure. Step back.
- What are you looking for?
- Well...
Well, if it was carried by the wind,
it might be something
we can't see with the naked eye.
Do you mind if I borrow
that black light?
MAURICE: Be my guest.
Here, step back.
- What the hell is it?
- Whatever it is, it's organic.
Could that be causing the blackout,
though? Thank you.
Can I talk to you for a minute?
We have to call Naz. This could be
some kind of biological attack.
Yeah.
- You know, I saw this last night.
- Out on your capeless crusades?
This glowy stuff,
it was on a murder victim.
It was all over his hands. I mean,
it's gotta be connected somehow.
Oh, so your illicit, illegal escapades,
they weren't for nothing.
- I also do some good, you know.
- And the city thanks you.
But it doesn't make what you did right,
or legal, or OK with me.
- You wanna follow up on this lead?
- Yes, lead on.
So we headed to the workplace
o! Luis Vargas,
the dead security guard
with the glowing hands.
The New York City
Department of Buildings
is the department that regulates
the building ol, well, buildings,
which is where we ran into
my new friend, Detective Hernandez.
Brian Finch.
The man fights crime by day too.
Detective Hernandez,
meet Agent Rebecca Harris.
Thanks for letting us borrow
your golden boy last night.
- Pleasure.
- So what's up?
Last night
I noticed something really weird.
It was like a green and orange substance
on Luis Vargas's body.
It may be connected to the blackout. Did
you guys notice anything unusual here?
There was a broken lamp
on the 18th floor.
But could've been knocked over
in the blackout. Nothing's missing.
Huh. Isn't that where they store
the blueprints for the city buildings?
Saw it on the directory.
You mind if we take a look?
Cool.
- Elevators are out, aren't they?
- Yep. Hope you packed extra lungs.
[SIGHS]
I gotta up my cardio.
What do you think, spinning?
- Do you spin?
- I chase you around all night.
Hey, you know, to be fair, we wouldn't
even be following this lead...
Hang on.
...if I hadn't have gone out last night
on NZT.
If you expect me to thank you for a lead
that took me up 18 flights of stairs...
It's just you swore
you would stop hoarding NZT pills.
I have, OK? That was my last one.
Well, and this one,
the one Mike gave me.
You promise you're not lying to me?
What are we, six years old?
I promise, OK?
No more extra pills.
We have files here, files there.
- You wanna split up, cover more ground?
- Yeah.
BRIAN: You might be wondering
what I'm looking for. So am I.
But I at least have a theory.
Someone broke in here
searching for something.
But what were they after'!?
I mean, their filing system
was a clerical nightmare,
but after t sorted out the documents
that were misfiled or misplaced...
...there was one empty drawer
that stood out,
one that seemed recently raided.
Blueprints for a building
on 53rd Street in Turtle Bay.
What was there
that was worth murdering a guard for
and how did this all relate
to the blackout?
Rebecca?
Rebecca?
Whoa. Hey, Hernandez, what's going on?
Sir, please hold right there.
- Are you Brian Finch?
- Yeah.
- He's positive.
- You need to come with us.
What the hell?
Under 42 CFR 70,
we're placing you into quarantine.
You came into contact
with a suspicious substance.
- From the power plant? What was it?
- Undetermined.
- What does that mean?
- It came from an unknown origin.
- You've both been exposed.
- OK, OK, OK, OK.
Remember when you offered
to give me a ride today,
and I was like, "Nah"
and you were like, "I insist?"
I'm guessing
you regret that decision now?
You're not wrong.
Of all the days to get sealed up
in a plastic bubble together.
I just mean cos you're annoyed
about last night and the pills.
We cleared that up.
Unless you're still lying to me.
- I'm not.
- Then we're good.
Good.
[GROANS]
My phone's dead.
Here, can I borrow yours?
Just gotta do some research
on the Luis Vargas case.
Well, here's a lucky pair.
I'm Sturgeon Reid, astrophysicist.
Today I'm working in tandem with the CDC
to take a look at the substance
that you encountered at the power plant.
Why is an astrophysicist
working with the CDC?
Well...
MAN ON TV:
What did we discover today?
Officials are not yet sure,
but panspermia, yeah?
The idea that life on earth...
What exactly were we exposed to?
- Would you turn that off, please?
- “extraterrestrial life...
We know that it is a bacterium
which appears to be feeding
directly off the electricity
generated by the power plant.
It's not the first bacterium to do this,
but this species is unique.
Unique? As in from outer space?
We found traces of the bacterium
on a cargo ship
that passed under
the Quadrantid meteor shower yesterday,
so it's possible that the origins
of this species could be...
Alien?
This is awesome.
Wait, we're not gonna die, are we?
What's the plan
to stop the bacteria from spreading?
Since it's feeding off electricity,
we're hoping to starve it by shutting
down all the power in Manhattan.
That's gonna be chaos.
And how long do we have to stay here?
Well, since you've had direct exposure,
I've recommended
you stay in observation.
Alert the attendant if you feel ill.
But look on the bright side.
You could be making history.
- I don't know about all this.
- What do you mean?
I don't know. Can I borrow your phone?
Or we could play charades.
Thank you.
[HORNS BLARE]
What's your... What's your station?
Anything's good.
I don't really listen to the radio.
[TURNS OFF RADIO]
Looks like we're getting out of here
just in time.
- I don't want to.
- Come on.
Hey, thanks for this, by the way.
You can imagine what it's like to have
a cold, stir-crazy five-year-old.
Give me the bag.
All right, we need the bag. The bag.
[HORN BLARES]
Hi. Oh, I'm so glad you're...
I'm so glad you're OK.
- Hi, doll.
- Hi, honey.
MOM: We're so glad you got here.
We were getting worried.
- Who's that?
- They got us out of the city. Be nice.
- Thanks for taking care of my kids.
- Of course, sir. It was our pleasure.
Well, I assume you'll be going back now.
Good luck.
Actually, our orders are to stay
until everything's been cleared up.
- Orders from whom?
- Your son, sir, Brian.
We can wait outside if that's easier.
Well, no, of course not.
It's freezing. Come in.
Dennis is just getting lunch.
I'm gluten-free.
BRIAN: Turtle Bay. The address
is on 53rd between 2nd and 3rd.
BOYLE: You do realize
we're kind of busy here?
Yeah, I'm not asking you
to go get me some Skittles, Boyle.
I know this is important.
Look, the missing blueprints were
for some kind of commercial building,
and when I looked online,
all of the occupants from the ground up
were pretty mundane.
I mean, I couldn't figure out
why anyone would target them.
But the basement tenant is the United
States Bureau of Engraving and Printing.
Oh, I know that location. It's where
banks send soiled and defaced bills.
Exactly.
The Department of Mutilated Money.
And the New York office
handles the entire northeast.
Do you know how much cash
they must have in there?
But it's unusable currency
waiting to be destroyed.
Not all of it. A good fraction of it
can be cleaned and repaired.
A security guard, Luis Vargas,
was killed the other day,
presumably by whoever was stealing
the blueprints for this address.
Do you know what they found
on his body?
The same bacterium
that's causing the blackout,
except Luis Vargas was killed a full day
before the meteor shower hit New York.
So you think the bacteria
came from some other alien invasion?
As much as I hate to admit it,
I think it might not be alien at all.
I mean, they say
it's similar to known bacteria.
So what if someone
cultivated a new strain
and released it to cause a blackout?
It's the perfect cover
to steal a bunch o! cash.
Yeah, mutilated cash.
Why not hit a bank?
Because it's an easier target.
People think
that money's basically trash,
which means people wouldn't think
to look there first, but we did.
If we can just get over there, we might
be able to stop the heist from happening
and find the people responsible
for the whole blackout.
- Yeah.
- And by we... I mean you.
Because we're still
kind of quarantined here.
All right, I'll see what I can do.
- Can I have that?
- What the hell is this?
- Can I have my phone, please?
- No. What the hell is this?
Who sent this to you?
An agent sent to search the government
property where you're living
for what looks like NZT pills
hidden in your vinyl collection.
You told me there weren't any more.
You could've said something to me before
sending the cavalry into my apartment.
I did say something and you lied to me.
Do you have any idea
how irresponsible it is
to use this drug however you want,
whenever you want?
The rules, managing your dosage,
keeping a watch out for you,
they're there to keep you alive,
to keep you safe.
The FBI doesn't care about keeping me
safe. They care about keeping me useful.
If you think I don't care,
you haven't been paying attention.
I brought you into the FBI.
I've stood up for you...
You have no idea
what you're talking about.
I know what happens
if this gets out of hand.
I'm not like anyone. No one else is
going through what I am going through.
You are hiding pills
like an addict, Brian.
I know that you are immune
to NZT side effects
and I know that makes you think
you're different somehow.
- But you are not immune.
- You're gonna tell me what I think?
- That's not what I'm saying.
- You don't know inside my head.
We're not psychic twins,
and if you want the real truth,
I may be addicted to these drugs.
Thanks for that, by the way.
- But you're addicted to me.
- What?
Solving things, breaking cases,
that's your high.
Because of me,
you get to do it at a whole new level.
You wanna go back to your old life,
keeping up with paperwork
and crossing your Ts
and dotting your ls,
seeing it all end in frustration
half the time?
You need all this as much as I do,
you need NZT as much as I do,
and you know it.
Can I have my phone?
BRIAN: Two pills. They only found two.
Where are the others?
- Dad looks stressed.
- Well, can you blame him?
First there's the power outage.
Now we have federal agents in the living
room making awkward conversation.
Yeah.
Or maybe he's just picking up
on the glances
between you and the one
who looks like Cary Grant.
- Mom.
- I'm just saying, Rachel, come on.
That boy is smitten.
It's written all over his face.
- Please stop talking.
- Square jaw, still has all his hair.
I swear to God, I will cut my wrist
with this butter knife.
All right, so something is on your mind.
If it's not him, what is it?
Don't tell Dad, OK?
He gets so upset about these things.
It's Brian.
We were hanging out at his safe house
the other night
and he went over to his records
and it looked like
he took something out.
So when he left, I went over...
[SIGHS]
...and I found...
I'm not sure what they are,
but I'm pretty sure that they are part
of why he is the way that he is now.
But what's really bothering me is
did he get into the FBI
because he's taking these?
Or are they the ones
that are giving it to him?
I've never seen anything like this.
- You OK?
- Hey, Dad.
Yes, yes, good. Um...
Here, let me help you put out lunch, OK?
OK, good.
[BOYLE WHISTLES]
They cleaned house.
BRIAN: Not a dollar inside?
Not one you can spend. Cleaned out.
Looks like you had the right idea.
We just didn't get here in time.
So it was a heist, and they did know
the blackout was coming.
Well, I talked
to the department's senior manager.
The guy estimates there was a little
more than $8 million in this safe.
Boyle, I'll have to call you back.
Looks like the CDC might have an update.
Agent Rebecca Harris, Brian Finch.
Aren't you guys supposed to be
wearing masks or something?
The bacterium proved non-communicable.
Seems it feeds exclusively on electrons
found in inanimate sources.
Meaning we didn't have to be here
in the first place?
You're free to go.
Well, after we take your vitals.
Legal issue.
Proof we sent you home in good health.
- You're discharged.
- Hey, Rebecca.
[SIGHS]
We get our clothes back, right?
Marie. Marie. Stop.
Come here.
Sit down. Talk to me.
- What's on your mind?
- You talk to Brian more than I do.
He's always sought you out, trusted you.
Dennis, I know that you have been
talking to him about all of this,
all right, and I understand
if you wanna keep it close to the vest,
and you wouldn't do that if
you didn't know that he was all right.
- But is Brian all right?
- What do you mean?
I mean, what are they doing to him?
Do you know?
He's fine. Brian's gonna be all right.
Do you know anything
about pills or drugs they're giving him?
What do you know?
- Hard at work, I see.
- Yeah.
- You OK?
- Yeah.
I mean, I'm a little bummed that the CDC
burned my Joy Division shirt.
It was an original.
- You seen Rebecca?
- She's upstairs with Naz.
Mmm.
Something happen between you two
in quarantine?
I don't know.
Mistakes were made, words were said.
I guess it's our first real fight.
Well, the handler-consultant
relationship is stressful enough
without being thrown
into a plastic bubble together.
You guys will get through it.
- OK?
- Yeah.
Generators and cell towers
are starting to power down.
I told Naz I'd come down,
check in to see if you had any leads
on the mutilated money gang.
Yeah, I do have something.
So my theory is that whoever pulled off
the heist planted the bacteria, right?
And since the financial district
was the first to lose power,
specifically the 200 block
of Chambers Street,
we can assume that's where the bacteria
was first introduced.
Now, as for who did it...
...there are only 12 people
in the New York area
with enough scientific expertise
to not only engineer the bacteria
but also know
how to successfully plant it.
Now, if they were smart enough
to do all that,
then they're probably smart enough
to stay off security cameras,
and that's where these come in.
Well, I've come to respect
some of your ways, Finch.
That doesn't mean that I'm gonna be
strolling around the financial district
wearing a sandwich board.
There's a large homeless population
around that area,
people who have nowhere to go
during a blackout.
- They might identify one of the perps.
- Or I could call a friend at the NSA.
- We're not doing that.
- Why not?
They would have a copy of every phone
conversation these scientists have had.
Well, is this on the DL
or are we asserting the Patriot Act?
You're siding to protect
people's privacy? That's ironic.
Heist or not, someone shut down
the power on Manhattan.
That's an act of terrorism.
Or you can wear the sandwich board.
He's your consultant.
Actually, I was gonna make a few.
I thought we could all wear 'em.
No, you're right, Boyle,
we should call in the NSA.
Brian, can I talk to you for a second?
Yeah.
Look, I'm sorry...
You know, when all of this started,
we made promises to each other.
I said I would help you through anything
as long as you didn't lie to me.
- I know. I didn't mean to lie to you.
- I just spoke to Naz.
You're being assigned
to a different handler,
and in the meantime
you'll work with Boyle.
BRIAN: 0! course,
the day the NSA came to the CJC
was the day everything started
spiraling out of control.
You know how for years
the NSA has been saying
they only collect metadata
from phone conversations?
Well, that's sort of a lie.
Don't handle that, please.
They're actually
recording and storing the audio
of at least 80%
of Americans' phone calls.
Sign here.
Can I touch?
The average adult sends and receives
about five calls a day.
Multiply that by 365 days,
times 12 suspects
and I'm listening
to over 21,000 conversations.
Most of them were totally irrelevant.
I told you not to push her away.
Relax. You don't have to say anything.
A new handler? Really? You think
you're gonna be able to make that work?
Is there anyone else here
who will protect you like she did?
How are you going to fix this?
I can't.
Ma... Uh...
I can't make out this last track.
If you... Yeah, rewind that. Thank you.
Where was I? Right, it's down
to Ian Marshall and Sturgeon Reid.
STURGEON:
I'm not disagreeing with you.
It's just that we won't recognize it,
even if it was ET biting us on the ass.
Man isn't ready.
Maybe in our grandchildren's lifetime,
but not in ours.
IAN:
You care to make a bet?
One dollar says we will find
evidence of alien life in our lifetime.
STURGEON:
And one dollar says we won't.
I believe you owe Dr. Marshall a dollar,
Dr. Reid.
What is this? What are we doing here?
You two have
kind of a friendly rivalry... ish.
Just a couple of eminent astrophysicists
debating whether or not
we discover evidence of extraterrestrial
life within the next couple of decades.
You even made a bet about it,
didn't you? For one dollar.
How could you possibly know that?
On the one hand,
we have the skeptic, Sturgeon Reid.
Laying his money and pride on the ETs,
Dr. Ian Marshall.
And you saw to it you were gonna win
that buck, didn't you?
I'm not conceding
that such a bet even happened.
We don't need you to.
We shared our concerns
with the provost of Walcott University
and she agreed
to let us take a look in your lab.
We found trace amounts
of the bacteria causing the outages,
some destroyed cultures.
- Care to explain?
- I'll get you started.
You discovered a species of bacteria
that feeds on electrons,
but you kept it to yourself.
You released a colony
in the financial district
and timed that release
with the passage of the meteor shower,
so people would start thinking aliens.
It's a clever plan, dude. Own it.
Plus we already got you
kind of dead to rights, so...
Actually, it was one of my research
assistants who discovered the bacteria,
but I convinced her not to report it.
I just wanted to win.
And at some point
you started to want more than that.
I'm sorry?
The theft of $8 million
from the Department of Mutilated Money.
Luis Vargas, the security guard
you murdered two nights ago.
You caused the blackout, then used it
as cover to make yourself rich.
He surprised you
when you were stealing the plans.
No, no, no, no, no. I am not a killer.
I'm not a thief. I have tenure.
Two nights ago?
What time did this murder happen?
Time of death is estimated
between 9 and 11 pm.
Relax, Ian.
Tuesday night, Dr. Marshall and I
gave a lecture together at Columbia.
1,400 students will attest
for our whereabouts.
He may have planted the bacteria,
but Dr. Marshall didn't kill anyone.
REPORTER: Please avoid at! streets
between Houston and Grand,
Allen and the East River.
City officials have reopened the
Williamsburg Bridge and a checkpoint...
- Come on, come on, come on.
- [HORN BLARES]
HEY. guys. How's it going?
That's a dumb question. It's not going.
That's the thing
about standstill traffic, right?
It's the pits. Corey Martinson?
You're Ian Marshall's research
assistant. I'll take that as a yes.
So we're from the FBI
and we just learned
that your boss is the one
behind the hoax that paralyzed the city.
And the way he tells it, you helped him
fabricate the bacteria that did it.
Also he said you were his only partner.
Would you be willing to testify against
your boss in the charges he faces?
Um...
I don't know.
Wait. How did you find me here?
Here? We just waited for you to show up.
This is, after all, the only way
out of the city at the moment.
We at the FBI kindly set it up that way.
Thing is, somebody used the blackout
to stage a robbery
of the Department of Mutilated Money.
Someone like, say,
an underpaid research assistant
with crushing amounts of student debt.
Someone who saw her boss's relatively
harmless hoax as an opportunity.
That same somebody had a cousin
who did time for armed robbery.
- Hi, Frank.
- Together they came up with a plan.
They even ordered a ridiculous amount
of laundry detergents from Amazon
to clean the money they stole.
Any of this sounding familiar?
Of course not.
Would you two mind if we took a look
in the back of this ambulance,
rented from a private EMS service
to move about freely in the quarantine?
Hey. hey!
Thank you. We weren't able to get
a warrant with all the power being out.
But that attempted escape
is probable cause.
And that, my friend,
is irrefutable evidence.
What's it say?
I wonder if anyone's ever tried
calling this number.
Think there's actually a good time
at the end of this line? Should we call?
You can give it a shot if you want.
I'm gonna go home, man.
Hey, Brian, pains me to say it,
but, uh... it's not the worst thing,
huh, us working together?
I didn't really wanna go home. I sure
as hell didn't wanna go back to the CJC.
There's only one place
I could think to go,
the one place people still love me
because they have no choice.
Hey, Cameron. You leaving already?
I was hoping to catch you guys
for dinner.
We heard it shouldn't be long
before the power's restored.
- If I were you, I'd turn around now.
- What? Why?
I don't know what's going on,
but I definitely heard your name,
so run while you can.
Hey. guys. What's going on?
Sit down, Brian.
OK. Sounds ominous.
Mom, you OK?
You know, Brian, I always knew that
you had something special about you.
A good head, you were sensitive,
you cared about other people,
even if you were being impulsive,
even if the things you were doing
looked selfish on the face of it.
I believed in that light
that was in you so much
that, uh, I let a lot of things slip by.
Finding pot in your jeans when you
left them out for me to wash as usual.
- Mom, come on...
- No, let me finish.
I figured that we would find
some kind of balance, you know?
Your father would give you discipline,
some structure.
I would give you room to run
so you could figure things out.
And I honestly thought
that's what was happening to you now.
I thought,
"Maybe he's finally figured it out."
Ugh. What an idiot I was.
- Come on, Mom, you can't...
- No.
- What the hell are these?
- Jesus.
You wanna tell me about them?
Because your father won't.
We've been married for 42 years
and there has never been a single thing
that we could not discuss.
So whatever these are must be serious.
- Dad...
- This is between you and your mother.
- You brought this into our home.
- No, I didn't. No, I didn't.
The moment you got your sister
into this, you did.
Leaving these pills lying around,
having her come to that safe house
that you have been mysteriously given.
- You put your sister in danger.
- No, I haven't.
Undercover agents coming over,
bleeding out on the kitchen table.
Rachel.
MARIE: Brian, no.
lam not turning a blind eye anymore.
I don't know what these pills are.
I don't wanna know.
And I don't want our family
any deeper in this than we already are.
Mom, I can't tell you everything,
but I can explain...
Brian, no.
I don't want any more excuses.
Because unless you start making
some different choices,
you are not welcome here.
I love you, Brian,
but... just...
- [MOUTHS]
- ...HO.
[I ELBOW: THE BLANKET OF NIGHT]
♪ >A' Paper cup of the boat
♪ >a' Heaving chest of the sea
♪ >a' Carry both of us
♪ >a' Carry her, carry me
♪ From the place we were born
♪ To the land o! the free
♪ >a' Carry both of us
♪ >a' Carry her, carry me
♪ >a' Moving silent her lips
♪ >a' By the moon's only light
♪ >a' Sowing silver prayers
♪ >a' In the blanket of night a'
Just go do it. It ain't gonna get
any easier, you sitting here.
- I know. It just...
- You're gonna miss her. Go.
Get out of the car!
Rachel.
- Hey.
- Listen...
Jason, I'm sorry.
I... I should've stayed in touch.
And I was weird to you
at my parents', I know.
- Things have been strange.
- I'm not here to talk about that.
Oh, OK.
Your morn mentioned
an undercover agent,
that he showed up at Brian's apartment
bleeding out?
- Yeah?
- Could you describe him for me?
Banker's hours today?
F Train. There's some kind of delay.
- I need to talk to Brian.
- Not in yet.
I guess he took the same train.
BRIAN:
I can'! come to the phone right now,
but if there's an emergency,
you can try Rebecca Harris any time.
BRIAN: Hey.
Thought about stopping by, but I figured
you'd seen enough of me lately.
You should know a few things.
Fm sorry for the things t said.
You deserve better than that.
Whatever else happens, you saw potential
in me that no one else ever did.
It's not just the pill that changed
my life, it's you, so thanks for that.
Things may get a little crazy
for a while.
I know I haven't given back
as much as you've given me.
There's probably no way I ever could.
But starting now, I'm gonna try.
And in order to try,
I've gotta do a few things,
so you may not hear from me
for a minute.
I think I have a way
to make some of this OK.
And if it all works out,
I'll see you in a few days.
And if it doesn't,
well, we had some lulz, right?